The leader of the free world can't use stairs. That was the story after reports began to circulate that Joe Biden had started using Air Force One's short set to avoid another embarrassing fall. 

Apparently, that was just the beginning, though. Bolstered by the president's vicious spill at the U.S. Air Force Academy, an expanded strategy is underway to keep Biden upright, and it's as hilarious as it is pathetic. 

According to Axios, it's a multi-pronged approach that includes wearing special shoes and even doing physical therapy, along with the aforementioned avoidance of stairs.

🚨🚨Scoop: Biden don't-let-him-trip strategy - new shoes, balancing exercises, shorter stairs https://t.co/HZlvhtvOaV

— Jim VandeHei (@JimVandeHei) September 26, 2023

Driving the news: As voters express deep concerns about the 80-year-old president's age and fitness for office, Biden's team is taking extra steps to prevent him from stumbling in public — as he did in June, when he tripped over a sandbag at the Air Force Academy.

• With a physical therapist, Biden has been doing exercises to improve his balance as far back as November 2021.  
• Since his stumble in June, he has been wearing tennis shoes more often to avoid slipping — and using the short stairs on Air Force One, entering the plane on a lower deck than before. 

Whenever you see a report like this, you have to understand why it's being printed. Axios is a liberal publication, but with Biden struggling in the polls, there's genuine panic starting to set in. It's safe to speculate that many Democrats want him off the ticket, likely replaced by Gavin Newsom, but few of them have the guts to say that directly. 

Thus, you are left with a trickle of pieces that heavily suggest the president is unfit for office without coming right out and saying it. To that effect, the Axios article cites polling data showing that most Americans are concerned about Biden's advanced age. 

They should be. When the president wore tennis shoes during formal proceedings in India recently, that was a pretty big clue that something was wrong. None of this is normal or reassuring.

Some Democrats are blaming his advance team, though. 

Zoom in: Some senior Democrats privately have been frustrated with Biden's advance team for months, citing the sandbag incident and noting that the president often appears not to know which direction to go after he speaks at a podium.

• Often without context, Republicans have used video clips of Biden looking confused about where to go after speeches to raise further questions about his age.

That's just silly. As much as I'm not here to defend Biden's handlers, I'd bet a lot of money that they do tell Biden where to go after every speech. His confusion appears completely of his own making given it happens nearly every time he tries to exit a stage. Certainly, Republicans aren't posting those clips "without context." The context is Biden trying to walk off a stage and being confused. What other context would Axios like? 

Keep in mind that it's September of 2023. The next presidential election is over a year away. Somehow, Democrats have to keep Biden sentient and without any broken bones until then. That's a tall task and one they'd clearly not undertake if there's another out. Unfortunately for them, Biden is never going to voluntarily step aside.